The coach of the Argentine national team, Lionel Scaloni, presented this Friday, March 1, 2024, the squad list, with Brighton player from England Valentín Barco as the main novelty, for the friendlies that the Albiceleste will play in the United States against Costa Rica and El Salvador in the window FIFA de March.
The youth squad Boca Juniors will play his first matches with the senior team after his recent signing for English club Brighton And Hove, with whom he made his debut this week in the 1-0 defeat against Wolverhampton for the FA Cup.
The 19-year-old full-back He started most of Xeneize’s games last year, including the final of the Copa Libertadores in which Boca lost to the Brazilian Fluminense, and has a tour of the national team’s youth ranks.
The list led by the captain Lionel Messi, published this Friday on the official account of the Argentine National Team on the social network
The main absences will be Gonzalo Montiel, Lisandro Martínez, Marcos Acuña and Guido Rodríguez for suffering physical problems that will prevent them from being with the senior team.
Yes they integrate the list of basic pieces of the ‘Scaloneta’, such as the midfield formed by Enzo Fernández, Rodrigo de Paul and Alexis MacAllister, and the defense starring Nicolás Tagliafico, Christian Romero, Nicolás Otamendi or Nahuel Molina.
He albiceleste attack It is the structure that has suffered the least changes with the presence of Lautaro Martínez, Julián Álvarez, Paulo Dybala or the experienced former FC Barcelona or Paris Saint-Germain player and today a member of Inter Miami.
The veteran extreme Benfica Portuguese Angel Di Maria He is another of the regulars for the Argentine coach. ‘Fideo’ will live these last few months with the team with emotion, since he announced in November 2023 that he would say goodbye to the national team after the Copa América being held in the United States this year.
Other regulars who were part of the team that lifted the golden cup in the last World Cup are goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez, the central defender Germán Pezzella, or the midfielders Leandro Paredes or Exequiel Palacios.
These friendly duels They will serve to prepare Argentina for the continental tournament in which it will seek to retain the title, after the one achieved in Brazil 2021.
On March 22 they will play against El Salvador at Lincoln Financial Field, from Philadelphia, and on the 26th against Costa Rica at the Los Angeles Coliseum.